The Village of Roccantica

The fortified village, erected in 1576 by the Orsini family, replaced the old castle that had by then been converted into a monastic convent. Designed according to the Renaissance principles of the “fortress village,” it was intended to be completely self-sufficient in case of siege. Inside it were cellars for storing wine, oil and grain, a millstone, an oil mill, vats, woodsheds and small vegetable gardens protected by the town wall. This wall extended beyond the main core of the village and included tower-houses, which served as both dwellings and defense points. In fact, the inhabitants were directly defending their homes and families, not an abstract institutional structure.

Some of the defensive elements of this fortification are still visible, such as the tower-houses with stone buttresses, which can be found along Valentine Square and Via Romana to Via Nuova. The town wall, bounded by St. Joseph, Pacigno, Arcoscuro and Valentini streets, originally included the Roman Gate, which was demolished in the 18th century and replaced by the access now known as “the columns.”

The construction of the first city wall, with Porta Nuova, dates back to 846, after the attempted Saracen invasion. Porta Reatina, on the other hand, is part of the second city wall erected by the Orsini, oriented toward Mount Tancia and Rieti, at the same time as the foundation of the fortified village.

With the expansion of the lower part of the village in 1576, the Orsini built a new noble palace and strengthened the village with new tower-houses, which ensured not only defense, but also the self-sufficiency of the village thanks to the internal gardens and water sources. This defensive system involved the entire population, as each inhabitant protected his own house within the fortified structure.

In later centuries, the structure of the fortress village was modified by the Vincentini family, who added a small theater, transformed the patrol path and built a watchtower in front of the bell tower of the church of St. Valentine. In addition, an inner garden was created on the south side with a gazebo.
In the 20th century, the Vincentini family was absorbed by the Potenziani family, and the village-fortress complex changed hands several times. Finally, with a series of fractional sales, the hamlet was transformed into a kind of “condominium,” making the historic complex inaccessible in its entirety.
Despite these transformations, the fortified hamlet still retains traces of its extraordinary history, representing a rare example of Renaissance defensive architecture, where the community found protection and self-sufficiency within centuries-old walls.

The Village of Roccantica

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